GABA and its receptors' mechanisms in the treatment of insomnia
Wenwen Zhu,
Lishan Huang,
Hanxing Cheng,
Nanxi Li,
Bin Zhang,
Wenbin Dai,
Xiao Wu,
Dechou Zhang,
Wenzhan Feng,
Sen Li,
Houping Xu
Affiliations
Wenwen Zhu
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Lishan Huang
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Hanxing Cheng
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Nanxi Li
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Bin Zhang
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Wenbin Dai
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Xiao Wu
College of Integrative Medicine, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Dechou Zhang
College of Integrative Medicine, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Wenzhan Feng
College of Integrative Medicine, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China
Sen Li
Division of Spine Surgery, Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Nanjing Drum Tower Hospital, Affiliated Hospital of Medical School,Nanjing University, Nanjing, China; Corresponding author.
Houping Xu
Geriatric Department, The Affiliated Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital, Southwest Medical University, Luzhou, Sichuan, China; Corresponding author.
Insomnia has now become a major health problem of global concern, with about 1/3 of the population suffering from sleep problems, a proportion that is still rising year by year. Most of the therapeutic drugs for insomnia currently used in clinical practice are not developed in a targeted manner, but are discovered by chance, and have unavoidable side effects such as addiction. Finding a safer and more effective therapeutic drug has become an urgent need for current research.Gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) is the major inhibitory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system. It can ameliorate Insomnia, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Epilepsy, and other neurological disorders. Various mechanisms have been reported for GABA to ameliorate insomnia, such as GABAA receptor modulation, GABAB receptor modulation, inhibition of neuroinflammatory responses, repair of oxidative damage, and inter-regulation of the circadian rhythm hormone melatonin. GABA is a potential therapeutic target in the prevention and treatment of insomnia.This paper reviews mechanisms of GABA and its receptors in insomnia diseases and the potential of GABA analogs application and discusses the research progress of GABA as a promising therapeutic drug for insomnia diseases. This will help the development of novel targeted GABA-like drugs and provide new ideas and methods for the clinical treatment of insomnia.
